By: Daniel Fusch

In the quiet moments of motherhood, between the school runs, bike rides, and making healthy meals with her children, Tulani Thomas noticed something missing on her family’s bookshelves. Plenty of children’s books were filled with adventure and fantasy. Still, few reflected her family’s lived experience: eco-conscious living, diverse representation, and a deep sense of responsibility to the planet. So, she did what many wouldn’t dare: write the book herself. Today, that book has grown into a movement.

Thomas founded TuTu’s Green World, an organization dedicated to educating, empowering, and energizing the next generation to embrace eco-friendly habits. What began as a single children’s book has blossomed into a multi-platform initiative encompassing books, videos, curriculum, brand wear, community programming, and speaking engagements aimed at raising environmentally-conscious youth ready to make generational change.

But Thomas didn’t arrive at this mission by conventional means. A CPA and corporate attorney by training and a former ballerina by passion, she’s a rare hybrid in environmental education. Her unique background, legal acumen, financial literacy, and an innate craving for creative storytelling have allowed her to build a platform that is as strategic as it is heartfelt.

“I was always a strong writer,” Thomas reflects. “Even in law, writing was my strength. However, something shifted when I had my second child and did not return to the law firm. I was very intentional about healthily raising my children, not just inside our home, but in harmony with the environment outside of it.”

As she curated their home library, she found it difficult to locate books that featured children of color actively engaged in environmentalism. That void became the spark behind her first book, TuTu Goes Green, which introduces readers to a vibrant young girl named TuTu, based on a nickname from Thomas’ grandmother. TuTu encourages simple, eco-friendly actions like reusing tote bags, turning off lights, and planting trees, offering easy ways for children to contribute to sustainability.

“She’s not doing anything earth-shattering,” Thomas says, “but that’s the point. Small acts, when done consistently, can lead to big impacts.”

The message resonated immediately. Schools, community groups, and bookstores embraced the book. “I didn’t realize how needed it was,” Thomas says. “That’s when I knew I wasn’t alone. There are other parents, teachers, and caregivers looking to raise kids with eco-conscious mindsets.”

The success of her first book led to a second installment, released in 2024, titled Soil Magic. In it, TuTu is older and working alongside her diverse team, the Green Crew, to address a waste management issue in their fictional town of Greenville. Through teamwork, civics, and composting, the kids lead their community in solving the problem, emphasizing environmental action, youth empowerment, and civic engagement.

“This book brings in advocacy, teamwork, and science,” Thomas explains. “We’re teaching composting, yes, but we’re also teaching how kids can show up in their communities and offer solutions. It’s about cultivating leadership.”

What sets TuTu’s Green World apart from other children’s media brands is its broad reach beyond just books. Thomas now collaborates with schools, corporations, governments, and nonprofit organizations, adapting sustainability programs to align with educational standards and community objectives.

In New Jersey, where sustainability goals are embedded in K-12 education, Thomas’s books and curriculum are being integrated into classroom instruction, green teams, and extracurricular programs. Schools invite her to lead gardening workshops, support Earth Day activities, and inspire students through storytelling.

Meanwhile, corporate settings have found a natural partner in TuTu’s Green World for employment engagement, sustainable messaging, and family programs. “Companies are trying to figure out how to reach both their employees and their employees’ children,” says Thomas. “TuTu becomes that bridge.”

Her initiative, ‘Small Acts, Big Impacts,’ is now a campaign that includes consulting, corporate lunch-and-learns, and programming that helps employees adopt greener lifestyles at work and home. She states, “It’s about showing how small behavioral shifts, composting, eating organically on a budget, and reducing plastic can benefit your health, your wallet, and your community.”

And with a background in finance and law, Thomas brings more than just inspiration. She brings strategy. “I speak both languages: the corporate one and the creative one,” she says. “That gives me a different perspective on sustainability, one that’s holistic and realistic.”

At the heart of all this work is a mother’s desire to build a better world for her children and all children. “TuTu is the girl I wanted to see in books growing up,” says Thomas. “She’s strong, she’s kind, she’s conscious, and she reflects the world around her.”

Thomas and her family still live what they teach. From long nature walks to homegrown meals and reusable everything, the TuTu philosophy is truly a lifestyle.

Now, with plans to expand into more schools and organizations and launch additional titles in the Green Crew series, Thomas is dreaming bigger. “We want to be on every platform where children are learning, whether that’s in classrooms, libraries, or streaming services,” she says. And yet, the essence of her work remains simple: show children that taking care of the planet is not only necessary but fun, empowering, and, yes, cool.